![]() The smoke that now cloaks Idaho, Montana and Wyoming in a near-perpetual haze for much of August and September each year has become the norm rather than the exception.Īre these smoky skies or that freak storm which sliced and diced my plans in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park the result of climate change? No one knows for sure. Along with the diminished snowpacks of drier winters come hotter summers and earlier and longer wildfire seasons. With only a few average or above-average precipitation years embedded in the last 15, the weather paradigm for the West seems to be changing. I’ve been photographing the American West for the last 30 years, and my task has become noticeably more difficult lately. ![]() Others surmise that the average annual position of the jet has actually shifted north over the last few decades.īow Lake and Crowfoot Mountain, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada Some surmise that the rapidly warming Arctic is causing the speed of the air within the jet stream to slow down, which seems to produce more pronounced large loops in the jet, which then causes storms and high-pressure systems to get locked into place, thus producing larger rainstorms and more widespread droughts. While this high-altitude river of air has been the traffic-control system for the storms that have swirled around our planet since time immemorial, its recent behavior has left more than a few atmospheric scientists and photographers scratching their heads. Indeed, we all have our horror stories where our well-laid plans are shredded by the vagaries of the jet stream. After all, the jet stream doesn’t determine where it’s going to dip or dive simply for our benefit. With permit in hand, I was left high and dry.įrom farmers to photographers, anyone who makes a living off the land always struggles with the weather. The area was shut off from the rest of the world, and officials estimated it would take months to open it again to visitors. Unfortunately, Peter Lougheed was the epicenter of the maelstrom, where roads, bridges and trails were erased from the map in a matter of minutes. I had selected a route that promised a wealth of images along a particularly dramatic portion of the Continental Divide. ![]() Two months before those storm clouds gathered over the peaks, I received a backcountry permit for a weeklong backpacking trip in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, just south of Canmore. A huge wall of water descended on the town, severing Canada’s transcontinental highway, and further downstream, turning the city of Calgary into a large, murky swimming pool. Last June, the largest single storm to ever hit the region was poised like a giant hammer over the headwaters of the Bow, unleashing 17 inches of rain in one day. Perhaps you thought last summer’s weather was particularly wild, especially if you live along the Bow River in the town of Canmore, Alberta, at the gateway to Banff National Park. Mount Chephren and Waterfowl Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
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